This invention relates to a granulating apparatus useful for preparing granules from coal particles contained in coal slurries.
For the transport of coal from mining areas to loading ports over long distances, it is common practice to pulverize coal to particle sizes of up to about 5 mm, disperse the particles in water to obtain a coal slurry and transport the coal slurry through a pipeline. While coal concentrations of such slurries suitable for transport are 50 to 60% by weight, for example, it is favorable that the slurry contain coal particles with a relatively wide particle size distribution, e.g. ranging from fine particles of the order of microns to granules up to about 5 mm in diameter, in view of the transport power, capacity, etc. After transport, the slurry must be dewatered, dried or otherwise treated for the separation of the coal particles from water. If the coal slurry contains fine coal particles, the filter will be clogged up when dewatering the slurry to result in a greatly reduced dewatering efficiency, or the separated particles will take a longer period of time for drying. Furthermore, when coal particles or granules including fines are drawn off from a storage tank, a bridging phenomenon is likely to take place, or fines will be released as dust.